The impact of AI, in particular generative AI, has been felt completely forced over the past three years, and its shockwave is now reaching the talent and recruitment department. Millions of businesses and organizations are addressing basic questions about what makes employees successful in the age of AI. Also, whether traditional recruitment models based on degrees and years of experience are effective. At the same time, employers need to ensure that both new hires and existing staff have a deeper understanding of the new world of work and know how to maximize its potential.
The Business-to-Business (B2B) Sales sector is a prime example of these challenges. By 2030, 70% of sales-related tasks will be automated by AI systems, according to Gartner's Future of Sales Report. In parallel, McKinsey estimates that AI is already improving the productivity of its sales teams by 10-15%, while Generative AI adds $0.8-1.2 trillion per year to global sales revenue.
Still, recruitment is still uneven. A McKinsey survey shows that only 21% of organizations have fully implemented Genai across their entire business, while 22% are still in the pilot stage. A Salesforce survey revealed that 53% of salespeople don't know how to extract the maximum value from Genai tools added to their workflows.
So who will become a future sales person, programmer, accountant, lawyer, or business manager? And how are they chosen? In recent years, there has been an increasing consensus that degrees and experience-based employment are no longer optimal in the age of AI. Instead, recruitment should be based on ability and skills that transcend the boundaries of a particular role. Automation in B2B sales and other sectors eliminates many classic sales roles, but also amplifies the importance of soft skills, including rapid learning, adaptability to changing conditions and new technologies, emotional intelligence, active listening and relationship building, critical thinking, and problem-solving. As generative AI takes over touchpoints beyond the customer journey, there is a growing need for employees with these skills, those who can navigate the most dynamic, complex, and high-stakes scenarios and provide real value-added to their customers and employers.
Given the dizzying pace of technological change, the ability to learn and adapt quickly is important. For example, a report from the World Economic Forum predicts that by 2030, 39% of today's required skills will disappear or undergo significant transformation. The forum also estimates that 170 million new jobs will be created, compared to around 92 million jobs globally.
According to a TestGorilla survey, 85% of organizations already adopt a skill-based recruitment approach, with two-thirds applying it to entry-level recruitment.
Today, businesses and organizations face double responsibility. First, we quickly recruit and embed generative AI technology and train employees to use seamlessly as part of our daily work. Second, embracing skills-based employment practices suitable for an era of rapid technological, business and environmental change. Generated AI automation does not redundantize human workers, but converts and enhances unique human characteristics and capabilities into new currency for business success.
The author is the founder and manager of the Israeli branch of Global Technology Services Company Concentix.
